The findings showed that men are more likely to purchase expensive rings when paired with attractive women, whereas women who rated themselves as being physically attractive were more likely to go for larger, more expensive rings, regardless of their partner''s looks.

"The finding is consistent with the notion that desirable women expect greater resource investment from their mates," said Madalyn Taylor from Western Oregon University in the US.

For the study, published in Evolutionary Psychological Science, the team included data from 590 participants with an average age of 30 years.

They were presented with a photograph and some brief information about a member of the opposite sex. Participants had to imagine themselves as the boyfriend or girlfriend of the depicted individual, who were pre-rated to be attractive or unattractive.

Women had to choose the smallest ring they were willing to settle for. In turn, the male participants had to indicate the size of ring they would buy for their imaginary girlfriends.

The results support the notion that men are willing to purchase larger, more expensive engagement rings when imagining themselves mated to a more attractive woman. This finding corroborates previous research on mate attraction tactics, which showed that men use symbols of financial success to attract desirable mates.

Further, it also provided an indirect support for the idea that women are willing to settle for a less handsome partner if his ratings can be upped by another form of compensation, such as being financially better off.

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